Berkshire Hathaway completes short line sales

Berkshire Hathaway has divested a second short line, the White City Terminal Union Railway, ahead of a schedule set by the Surface Transportation Board earlier this year, as part of the company's acquisition in 2010 of BNSF Railway.

None of the entities that bought Berkshire's short lines owns another railroad, negating the need for any additional STB oversight.

Last October, STB directed Omaha-based Berkshire Hathaway to "promptly remedy its noncompliance with railroad control requirements" stemming from its acquisition of BNSF.

In September, Berkshire Hathway noted that when it purchased BNSF, it held about 90% of MidAmerican Energy Holding Co., itself a majority owner of Council Bluffs, Iowa-based short line CBEC Railway. Berkshire sold CBEC to its two other co-owners last month.

It also acknowledged a controlling interest in Marmon Group, which includes RailServe, a subsidiary that controls White City Terminal Union Railway, a 13-mile short line that operates between White City and a junction north of Medford, Ore. Berkshire completed the sale of the WCTU this month.